Climate emergency: Sheffield route map shows how council will hit target of net zero emissions by 2030

The introduction to the first part of the council decarbonisation ‘route map’ to hit net zero emissions by 2030 says that the council “has a significant role to play in taking action in terms of reducing emissions within its direct control, and through its influence as a leader and enabler. It also has the potential to influence through its place shaping roles, including planning policy and enforcement.”

It adds: “However, the council cannot decarbonise the city alone. Whilst there is a wide range of action we can take, the transformation required also requires national changes in fiscal and wider policy, and greater actionglobally and nationally to address systemic failings resulting in skills and supply chain shortages and to perverse outcomes.”

The ‘route map’ is based on the council’s 10-point plan for climate action that was adopted last year. It sets out detailed plans for seven subject areas:• Our Council• The Way We Travel• Our Homes• Energy Generation and Storage• Our Businesses and Economy• The Way We Use Our Land• What We Buy, Eat and Throw Away

Plans to tackle the first two have now been published. Work is also taking place on what the council is doing to combat the nature emergency.

‘Our Council’

The ‘Our Council’ section says that improvements to the fabric of council buildings and council housing will be prioritised, followed by measures to reduce energy demand through efficiency savings and using renewable energy. This includes removing fossil fuel heating by connecting buildings to new and existing heat networks and using heat pumps. The work will involve training staff in the necessary skills in collaboration with Sheffield College.

The council’s fleet of vehicles should be fully electric fleet by 2030.

The report says considerable efficiencies have already been made to street lighting and further emissions reductions will be made as the electricity grid draws on more renewable energy and through potential further dimming.

Council housing

The council owns 39,000 homes in Sheffield, which in 2019 were found to be responsible for 89% of the council’s total emissions. The report says that if all the actions identified on its housing stock are implemented, this will account for an 80% reduction against the 2019 baseline.

As this falls short of the net zero target definition of a 95% reduction, offsetting measures outside the city boundary will be required. The report says: “It is recommended that these are done as close to Sheffield as possible such as peatland restoration or afforestation within the city region.”

The decarbonisation of council homes will help tenants to reduce energy bills, address fuel poverty and improve health benefits from a home that is “more thermally efficient and pleasant to live in”.

Measures will include draughtproofing, replacing glazing and loft, cavity wall, external wall insulation and floor insulation measures. Homes will become more efficient due to smart heating controls and LED lighting.

Where possible, more homes will be connected to new or existing heat networks, such as the district heating network which is fuelled by burning rubbish that cannot be recycled.

Council offices

The report says that many of its 122 offices and other buildings are “not only energy inefficient, but in a poor state of repair, with the repairs and maintenance bill outstripping the funding that is available”.

The council is reviewing the state of all its buildings to create a “smaller, more cost-effective estate that is fit for purpose, well maintained and meets the current and long-term needs of customers and employees”.

The review should be completed next March.

Council vehicles

The report says that the 1,145-strong fleet of its own vehicles and those owned by its main contractors Amey and Veolia are responsible for only 3% of its emissions.

It adds: “While our fleet may only account for a small percent of council emissions, transport is the third largest source of emissions in the city. The council needs to lead by example by decarbonising its own vehicles, encouraging its contractors and partners, and inspiring our citizens to act too.

“Decarbonising our vehicles will also lower fuel costs, reduce vehicle maintenance costs and improve air quality.”

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Other issues include removing the need for travel in the first instance through technological improvements such as remote service delivery, automatic meter reading and cashless transactions, car sharing, online conferencing and work-from-home arrangements and optimised route planning.

On land use, the council is creating natural habitats on its land that maximise carbon sequestration – keeping carbon locked into habitats such as peat moors, woodlands, ponds and grassland – and generate renewable energy. This includes working with the Sheffield Moors Partnership to protect and restore moorland.

Other issues discussed in this section include ensuring all staff are ‘carbon literate’ and targeting service suppliers, contractors and partners to integrate carbon reduction into their products and services.

‘The Way We Travel’

In The Way We Travel section, the focus is on helping people to walk, wheel and cycle, improving public transport and moving to electric and zero-emission vehicles, as well as low-carbon goods deliveries.

The report says that around 98% of the vehicles in the city are either diesel or petrol.

In total, 60% of journeys are made by car, and around 40% are less than 1km in distance (a 10-12 minute walk). The plan aims to encourage more of us not to jump in our cars for short trips.

As well as contributing to carbon emissions, cutting road traffic would decrease air pollution that the report says contributes to around one in 20 deaths a year in Sheffield. Since 2016, Sheffield has had the highest rate of road traffic accidents involving children among the core English cities, the report says.

The aim is for essential services and amenities to be within 15 or 20 minutes’ walk of where people live to help cut our dependency on cars.

The report says: “Working with partners, particularly the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA), citizens and businesses will be crucial.

“The council also has a role to play to encourage modal shift. Once a house is insulated, the work is largely finished, but the decision to cycle instead of drive needs to be taken daily. Transport, therefore, is the sector that relies most heavily on behaviour change,” the report says.

A section on public transport promises “an improved low-carbon public transport network to provide attractive alternatives to private vehicle journeys.”

The report outlines working with the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA) to bring Supertram under an arm’s length operation at the end of the current contract with Stagecoach next year, improving services and refurbishing and renewing the system and improving park and ride and active travel links.

It points to the Enhanced Bus Partnership Plan for South Yorkshire, which aims to deliver a cap on fares, faster and more reliable services and a better bus experience using a low-carbon fleet. The route map mentions “exploring the benefits and opportunities of a franchised bus network in South Yorkshire” which would bring the service back under greater public control.

Accessibility

The report also looks at transport barriers for people with disabilities and mobility issues. They include inaccessible cycleways, cluttered paths and a lack of storage for mobility aids and bikes.

It proposes employing an access officer to ensure buildings and infrastructure are accessible, talking with the Liaison Group and Transport for All forums and ensuring that EV charging hubs are designed to be accessible, including a booking system for disabled spaces.

Motability vehicles are transitioning to become all electric. The group Cycling 4 All could be funded to buy electric trikes for people to trial at home.

Trailing EV cables on pavements could be banned under the changes.

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The report says: “A zero-carbon transport system will support and increase the number of people able to walk, wheel and cycle for the journeys where it isappropriate, while also ensuring there are alternative travel choices where it is not an option.”

Low income

It acknowledges: “People on low incomes are less likely to have the resources to buy an electric car in the near future, but infrastructure needs to be ready for them, and it is important to minimise any negative financial impact onpeople who do not have the capacity to change the way they travel.

“They can often particularly benefit from improved public transport, subsidised bike purchases and secure storage for bikes, but greater shift working and longer hours may make this challenging for some.”

Schemes will be put in place to let people borrow and try out bikes and to help pay for them.

Active travel routes

By 2027, active travel routes will run from Charter Row to Wolstenholme Road with a spur to Broomhall, from Grey2Green around Castlegate and West Bar to the Olympic Legacy Park in Attercliffe, from Leopold Street to Neepsend Lane, from Meadowhall Interchange to the Rotherham boundary, from the city centre to the Northern General Hospital and from Charter Row to Arundel Gate and Leopold Street.

A decision on completing the Sheaf Valley cycle route is promised in the near future and a cycle route on East Bank Road is being looked at. Other feasibility studies involve a cycle route from Neepsend to Herries Road, an off-road track from Neepsend Lane through to Deepcar and a route to the reservoirs at Underbank and Stocksbridge.

The rise of online shopping and delivery services have led to proposals to decarbonise freight systems, including ‘last mile’ services bringing goods to customers’ doors.

This would include offering businesses options including ‘try before you buy’ electric vans and e-cargo bikes, bringing in neighbourhood collection lockers, moving more freight transport from road to rail and a looking at freight consolidation centres versus a transition towards electric HGVs.

The report stresses the need to move towards decarbonisation of all private vehicles as well as public and private hire transport. This would include increasing all types of charging points.